IT Pros Ask Santa for More People, Money

In CDW Corp.'s 2007 Holiday IT Wish List, a survey conducted among 626 IT professionals,
some 59 percent of respondents said they believed their organization is somewhat
likely or extremely likely to increase its investment in information technology
in 2008. Asked where their respective organizations would place their technology
bets for 2008, 52 percent said their companies are somewhat or extremely likely
to increase investments in virtualization, with knowledge management coming
in second at 40 percent.

When asked what gift they'd most like to find under their IT tree, 27 percent
said they'd like to have more IT staff, while 16 percent said they'd like to
have a larger IT budget. But their preference for more people or more cash had
largely to do with the size of their organization: There were more respondents
from small companies wishing for more budget to work with (about 21 percent)
than people (about 15 percent). On the other hand, 31 percent from large companies
asked Santa for more IT staffing, while only 14 percent wanted more dollars.

Other IT pros' wishes ranged from options to telework, more technology upgrades,
more time to get their work done, and -- an annual favorite -- more time off.

In the Techno-Sugarplum Index, the personal wish lists of IT pros, the preference
was for entertainment products. High-definition TVs topped the list at 24 percent,
followed by the Nintendo Wii (10 percent), digital SLR cameras (9 percent),
iPods (8 percent), and home theater systems (8 percent). Write-in candidates
included laptops, desktops and a range of peripherals.